Gaia
20th June 2016, 12:10
The summer solstice isn’t a rare event, a full moon even less so. But they’re both special, and when they just so happen to occur on the same day, as they will this year? That’s once-in-a-lifetime special.
The 2016 North American summer solstice happens on June 20, 2016 at 6:34 PM EDT. That’s the very moment when, essentially, the sun stands still at its northernmost point as seen from Earth. Its zenith doesn’t yearn north or south, but waits patiently at the Tropic of Cancer before switching directions and heading south again. This is where the word solstice comes from; the Latin solstitium, from sol (sun) and stitium (to stop).
It’s the day of the year with the most sunlight, the grand dame of long summer days. Even though technically it is only the first day of summer, it may actually be the best one of all.
The summer solstice alone is iconic enough. It’s a day with a time-honored history rife with pagan celebrations and all things Stonehenge. But this year we get the big beautiful bonus of a full moon, which hits its peak on the same day. This hasn’t happened in 70 years.
Meanwhile, adding a touch of poetry to the whole shebang, the June moon was known as the Strawberry Moon to early Native American tribes, who measured time by things like the moon, rather than a grid on a piece of paper or an electronic device. The full moon that happened now marked the season of strawberries as it still does. More and more people have started harkening back to these more-seasonal full moon names; it's an especially lovely practice.
Full-moon names here : http://www.moonconnection.com/full-moon-names.phtml
Slooh’s astronomers will broadcast the event live from their community observatory in the Canaries and the result can be watched [see link below for details] on 20 June.
Alternatively, viewers can also go to Slooh.com to watch the broadcast, snap and share photos, chat with other audience members, interact with the hosts and personally control Slooh’s telescopes.
During the event, astronomers will discuss the significance of the two events the solstice and the full moon happening at the same time. They will explore the importance of the solstice as a seasonal celebration in cultures across the world and throughout history.
http://live.slooh.com/stadium/live/june-solstice-full-moon
The 2016 North American summer solstice happens on June 20, 2016 at 6:34 PM EDT. That’s the very moment when, essentially, the sun stands still at its northernmost point as seen from Earth. Its zenith doesn’t yearn north or south, but waits patiently at the Tropic of Cancer before switching directions and heading south again. This is where the word solstice comes from; the Latin solstitium, from sol (sun) and stitium (to stop).
It’s the day of the year with the most sunlight, the grand dame of long summer days. Even though technically it is only the first day of summer, it may actually be the best one of all.
The summer solstice alone is iconic enough. It’s a day with a time-honored history rife with pagan celebrations and all things Stonehenge. But this year we get the big beautiful bonus of a full moon, which hits its peak on the same day. This hasn’t happened in 70 years.
Meanwhile, adding a touch of poetry to the whole shebang, the June moon was known as the Strawberry Moon to early Native American tribes, who measured time by things like the moon, rather than a grid on a piece of paper or an electronic device. The full moon that happened now marked the season of strawberries as it still does. More and more people have started harkening back to these more-seasonal full moon names; it's an especially lovely practice.
Full-moon names here : http://www.moonconnection.com/full-moon-names.phtml
Slooh’s astronomers will broadcast the event live from their community observatory in the Canaries and the result can be watched [see link below for details] on 20 June.
Alternatively, viewers can also go to Slooh.com to watch the broadcast, snap and share photos, chat with other audience members, interact with the hosts and personally control Slooh’s telescopes.
During the event, astronomers will discuss the significance of the two events the solstice and the full moon happening at the same time. They will explore the importance of the solstice as a seasonal celebration in cultures across the world and throughout history.
http://live.slooh.com/stadium/live/june-solstice-full-moon